Serious bowlers regularly change the inserts they use in the finger holes in their bowling balls as the size of their fingers changes. Finger size changes with varying temperature and humidity conditions and as the physiology of the bowler changes.
The regulations of the American Bowling Congress require bowlers, competing in tournaments with bowling balls having fingertip inserts, to secure the insert with an adhesive. Present techniques for removing fingertip inserts result in the inserts being destroyed because of the resistance of the adhesive to removal of the insert. Typically, a screw driver or other bladed tool is used to pry or scrap as much of the insert as possible out of the finger hole. If necessary, an abrasive material is used to remove any residue.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,475,876 and 3,129,002 describe special fingertip inserts for bowling balls and tools for removing these inserts. Each of these inserts requires special preparation of the finger holes into which the inserts are inserted. The insert in U.S. Pat. No. 2,475,876 requires an internal thread in the finger hole, while the insert in U.S. Pat. No. 3,129,002 requires a counterbore at the lower portion of the finger hole. Providing an internal thread or a counterbore in the finger hole can be difficult and adds expense to the hole preparation. In addition, the inserts must be shaped correspondingly adding expense to their fabrication.
Moreover, the insertion of the inserts of the aforementioned patents without an adhesive does not satisfy the regulations of the American Bowling Congress. When as adhesive is used to secure these inserts, the inserts will be destroyed when they are removed with the tools shown in these patents.